It wasn't that she was blind, or deaf; she knew things were spiralling out of control. The national comm broadcasts were either crime reports or useless information that was somehow worse for how it told its listeners absolutely nothing. It was just- what could she do? She had no real talents, no handy training and next to no fighting ability (her bar brawls not withstanding- Megatron appeared to get a vicious pleasure out of inciting a mech to insult her and then watching her take him down with the moves he'd taught her earlier that orn).
No names were mentioned (she kept telling herself that when she later wondered how she was so blind). It was just numbers and cities- shrapnel bomb exploded in Mebion, 3 offlined, 7 wounded- lone shooter in Tyrest takes down 13 before being caught by enforcers- underground fighting ring in Kaon explodes into street-
"Primus." Aurora Pax glanced over at the comm unit, then back at her partner. "You just got back from Kaon; it must have kicked off as soon as you left."
Megatron blinked. He had that expression where he wasn't sure exactly what to do with her, one he'd been wearing more often over the last four vorns. "I- assume so, yes," he said, slowly. "But tensions were high everywhere I went. It was only a matter of time before something happened."
"Still- an underground fighting ring?" Aurora Pax leant forward in her seat, so earnest. "That sounds serious. Isn't it the sort of situation the military should be called in on?" Her optics went wide as she worked something out. "Is that why you went back this time? Were you called in on a mission to eradicate them?" She scanned his frame quickly, not noticing any new injuries.
"No," Megatron assured her quickly. "If the military gets sent in, it will be a massacre. They're trying to have the enforcers handle it, however," he cocked his cranium, wondering how much he could tell her, "it's looking as though the city will be lost to these rebels by the end of the vorn."
"That's terrible," she whispered, reaching out with a hand to cover his. "Your home city, taken over by lawless criminals."
He was studying her very intently, optics focussed. She huffed indignantly, smothering an inappropriate laugh.
"Yes, I know. Soft-sparked and all that. It doesn't mean I can't feel sympathy, steel-for-spark that you are." She squeezed his hand gently before letting him go. "Want to go out and get your CPU off it?"
The intensity of his stare lessened, a flicker of a smile making its way over his face. "Want to see if we can break your record?"
"My rec-" momentary confusion gave way to irritation, and she elbowed him in the chest. "I'm not getting into more than three brawls to satisfy your curiosity. In fact," she elbowed him again, harder, "I wouldn't get into any brawls if you didn't keep inciting mechs to try it."
He caught her arm as she went to hit him again and pulled her close, her back fitting against his front. "It's all in good fun, Aurora Pax," he growled into her audio. "I don't worry because I know you can take it."
She leant back into him, making him support her weight. "And if you miscalculate? If I can't?" She knew he wouldn't drop her.
The growl became darker, fiercer. "They'll leave in pieces for hurting you."
-Kaon now fully in the grip of insurgents- similar rebellions taking place in Mebion and Vos- comm byte from self-proclaimed leader- new name- Decepticons-
"Primus, femme," Dion leant back in his chair and propped his feet up on the table. "How long's it been since the three of us kicked back like this?"
She and Ariel exchanged amused glances. "It's only been a couple of vorns, Dion," Ariel said softly. "And you've seen her at the docks."
"Yeah, at work," Dion replied, opinion on that clear. "The moment she's off duty it's all about her berth-mate; she never takes the time to see us anymore!"
"I'm still here," Aurora Pax pointed out testily, coming back to the pair with three cubes stacked on top of each other.
"For once," the lone mech snapped. "Your Megatron is a possessive slagger, you know? I can count on one hand the number of times I've seen you outside the docks in the last orn, and two of those were surprises."
"I don't mind his possessiveness," she countered levelly. "It lets me know he-" she broke off awkwardly, suddenly aware of where this conversation could go. Very pointedly, she did not let her optics catch Ariel's.
The pink femme spoke up anyway. "It lets you know he cares about you." There was sadness in her expression, a 'what-if?' never answered. "I'm glad you have someone who can do that for you now."
Aurora Pax forced back the sharp retort on her glossa. "Like I'm glad you and Dion have each other," she said instead, rewarded with a smile she still thought was beautiful even vorns later.
There was a long silence, nobody quite sure how to break it. Dion finally spoke, "What do you think about the rebellion reports, then?"
"I think it's horrible, as you well know," Ariel said immediately. "All this pointless fighting- what do they think they can achieve?"
Typical femme, Aurora Pax thought, then blinked. Was that how she viewed the rest of her race?
"And you, Aurora Pax?"
She jumped, and did her best to answer Dion's question. "I don't think it's pointless," she explained. "These- Decepticons- clearly have a reason for fighting or they wouldn't bother. They have a grievance with the government that should be addressed." When it looked like Ariel was about to argue, she continued, "But they could have raised their point in a better manner than fighting. Nobody will take them seriously if they don't stop killing everybody who opposes them."
"Maybe they mean to kill everyone 'til only those who agree with them are left," Dion stated soberly. The femmes glanced at him warily, in time to see a grin break out on his face. "Come on, like the Prime will allow that to happen?"
"The Prime doesn't have a final say in every decision, Dion," Aurora Pax rebutted. "If his council decides to go to war, he must lead them without dissent."
"You really think it will come to war?" Ariel asked, fear plain to see.
"The council have already lost Kaon; Vos and Mebion are all but fallen," Aurora Pax reported. "There's rumours that Vos didn't even fight- the seeker council signed on with the Decepticon leader without hesitation."
"Primus frag it," Dion whispered. "Where'd you hear that? I hadn't heard of it, and I get all the best rumours."
She delayed her answer for a moment, but he caught it. "Should've guessed. Megatron?" He asked, irritated.
"And what of it?" she replied. "It's a couple of things he's heard on the military comm line, that's all."
"Have you not noticed what the three cities have in common, Aurora?" Dion was shouting across the table at her. "Military presences! Vos- the seekers, our air force. Mebion- our military industry. And Kaon produces more military frames than the rest of Cybertron put together. How do you think a petty rebellion managed to overcome three military cities if they weren't in on it?"
Aurora Pax could read between the codes. "You think Megatron's a part of it," she said, betrayal in her voice. "You think my partner is out there offlining random mechs and femmes for the fun of it under the mask of making a political statement?" Her voice had risen; she was shouting right back at him. "You've never even met the mech! How dare you make such a judgement on him?"
"Do you know the rumour I did hear? About this fabled Decepticon leader?" Dion stood up and threw his untouched cube at the wall. "He's a military model, a large one. Heavy duty service at least. Favours a fusion cannon. And he signs his comm bytes, 'M'. 'M', Aurora." His face softened. "I don't want to see you hurt, Aurora Pax, by me or anyone else. I just- maybe you should start preparing for the possibility-"
"No." Her voice was sharp and cool. "No." She looked up, and her optics scorched him. Ariel sat forgotten on the couch, watching the two carefully. "If- I'll ask him myself, if it comes to it. But right now, nothing he has done should make me suspect him." She picked up her cube and took a steady drink of the energon. "Anyway, if he is this Decepticon leader, and I'm his partner?" She let out a bitter laugh that made Dion and Ariel wince. "I must be the safest spark on Cybertron, at this point in time."
Aurora Pax had never thought to connect Megatron's military duties with the comm reports that were coming in every orn from all corners of the planet. But now Dion had raised the doubt in her CPU, she couldn't ignore the automatic patterning of he was there? That's where the latest violence has begun. It was a crazy cycle of was-he-sent-there-to-deal-with-it-or-was-he-the-cause-of-it?
He had the next few orns in Central City; Aurora Pax planned to take advantage of it, and question him beyond her norm on exactly what he'd been sent out to do in Vos, where his last posting had been.
So there she was, about to knock on his door and ask her lover if he was responsible for the planet-wide upheaval Cybertronians everywhere were talking about.
Perhaps not in so many words.
Megatron answered while she was still lost in her thoughts. It took him placing a hand on her midsection, guiding her inside, to regain her attention.
"Oh," she said, moving where he led her. "Hello, again."
He smirked at her. "Hello. What were you thinking about in that processor of yours?"
There were few outward signs, but she knew he appreciated her coming over to see him every time he was back in Central. The closest she could get to explaining it was seeing something in his optics; Primus knew his expression was mostly inscrutable.
Facing him again, she couldn't believe what she had been thinking. "Nothing of importance," she replied with a shake of her cranium. "Just something strange that Dion said."
His smirk turned playful; dangerous. "Am I going to have to distract you?"
She matched him, smirk for smirk. "Do you think you're up to the job, soldier?"
"Come here, femme," he growled, pulling her down to the berth. She laughed, and went with him. Her thoughts were put aside- she didn't plan to dwell on them again.
"Megatron's back, then," was Dion's greeting as she wandered into the docks the next cycle. "You always have a stupid grin on your face when you come straight from his place."
"Ariel not putting out?" she asked sweetly, used to the coarseness of the mech workers and more than willing to repay it. "Is that why you're so grumpy with me these days? Not getting it from her, but can't get it from anyone else either?"
"That's not your business," he said, aiming it to wound; Aurora Pax was more amused by it these cycles. It had been so long, and she was happy enough with Megatron, that Dion and Ariels' being together wasn't the massive hurt it used to be. "I'm more concerned with what's going to befall Central now he's here."
"For Primus's sake, Dion-"
"Did you even ask him if he was involved?" He interrupted her. "A simple yes or no question, I assume you could tell when he lied in return."
"I didn't, actually," she bit back. "There's no need- I know him Dion, there's no way he's involved. He's one of the mechs sent to deal with it, not the one causing it."
"You're sure of this?" he asked, probing deeper.
She put her hands on her hips so she didn't punch her best friend. "I'm sure. I trust him, Dion; if you can't trust the mech you-" she stopped, suddenly aware she hadn't even admitted that to herself yet, and tried another route, "if you can't trust your partner, who can you trust?"
"Your best friend, for one," Dion said shortly, before turning to the machine he was working on that cycle, and ending their conversation.
"Frag it, Dion-" Aurora Pax stopped, hearing something on the edge of her audio range.
"What is it?" He'd noticed her sudden silence and was aware her audios were sharper than his.
She powered down her optics, focussing on the noise. "Sounds like... crying?" She reported, wondering what the reason was. "Screaming, yelling, general confusion. Coming from the office." She pinpointed the sound with difficulty.
"Let's go see what it's about, then," Dion said, their argument put aside for now.
When they entered the office, it was to see a large crowd of their co-workers surrounding the comms broadcasting system. They caught most of the message; presumably it was on repeat.
-Prime has been assassinated by the leader of the Decepticons. This is not a hoax; Sentinel Prime is offlined. An interim council has taken control of Cybertron, and once a new Prime is selected there is talk of war being officially declared. If anyone suspects they have intelligence on Decepticon movements, go to your local enforcer stations immediately and tell them what you know. This is your interim council, signing off. Stay safe.
Dion and Aurora Pax traded eloquent looks before she fled, running full out for the apartment she'd stayed at last night, and the mech she shared it with.
It was just a feeling in her spark.
But until she'd heard that message, until such a huge act of war had been committed in her own city, she'd never realised just how little she believed in coincidences.
"Megatron!" She burst through his door and caught him as he was placing his fusion cannon back against the wall.
He looked openly surprised for the first time since she'd met him. "Aurora-"
Her optics were stuck on the now resting weapon. "What were you doing with that?" she asked, tension in every syllable. He hesitated to answer; half hysterically Aurora Pax wondered if that could be taken as an admission of guilt.
"Megatron, answer me. Where were you in Central that was so dangerous you required your cannon?"
They locked gazes. It was the only way she'd know if he tried to lie to her. Looking back, she'd think he must have underestimated her, or thought her ignorance would betray her, because had he known how off-guard his optics could be he would never have made them so easy for her to see.
"Aurora Pax," Megatron said, voice completely steady. She wondered if she could hate him a little for that. "I was called in to the council building to help re-order the chaos left in the assassin's wake." His expression was entreating, open and willing her to believe him.
His optics were blank. No flashes of emotion, no sparks of feeling to match his words.
She recoiled when he reached out for her, avoiding his touch. "You're lying," she whispered. Thoughts cascaded from all corners of her CPU, half-remembered moments of insight she hadn't wanted to think about at the time; dates, places, curious looks and turns of phrase. "It was you all along. Primus, have I been this blind the whole time? Why couldn't I-"
"Aurora!" Megatron's tone had changed; it was urgent. "Listen to me-"
"No!" She backed out of the door; she couldn't handle this at the moment. She needed some time- "I need to get away. I need to think. I just- I need to go. Away from here."
She turned and ran. His last words made her flinch, though she pretended she didn't hear them.
"Go, then," he whispered. "But go far away. Leave this place entirely."
It broke her spark just that little bit more.
Megatron sat heavily on his berth, door still wide open from her exit. At least if she's gone...
"She won't be in danger tomorrow. She'll be out of the city by then, away from here."
The attack plans sat uncomfortably in his CPU, but it was too late to halt them now. Seekers had been infiltrating the city for orns, waiting for his signal in the form of assassinating the Prime.
He dragged his thoughts away from her and lost himself in the organising of the strike tomorrow, focussing away from residential areas and more on crippling the political and economical circles of the city.
"Tomorrow, it begins in the open."
I'm not going back.